Current Affairs 22nd June 2019

Current Affairs 22nd June 2019 - Important Points

• World Music Day 2019 celebrated on - 21st June 2019
•  Operation Sankalp in Persian Gulf launched by - Indian Navy
• 35th GST Council meeting with No decision on electric vehicles; E-tickets made compulsory in Cinema halls on - 21st June 2019
• Induslnd Bank- BFIL merger to be effective from  - 4th July 2019
• Who has been appointed India’s representative to ICAO’s council ? - Shefali Juneja
  Current Affairs 22nd June 2019 - Details

World Music Day 2019 celebrated on - 21st June 2019

The World Music Day 2019 was celebrated worldwide, on June 21st, 2019, the same day as the International Yoga Day. The International music day, also known as the Fête de la Musique, is a yearly celebration of music & on the event, people are requested to play music in public places & parks & various free performances are also pre-planned, where musicians play for free.

The theme for World Music Day 2019 is ‘Music at the intersections.’

First International Music Day

The 1st such music celebration was started by French Minister of Culture, Jack Lang & Maurice Fleuret. The International Music day was 1st observed in Paris in 1982 & far ahead it spread across 120 nations universally.

The World Music Day came into being due to the apparition of Maurice Fleuret, who then was designated the Director of Music in 1981 by France’s Culture Minister Jack Lang, intended a way to bring people out on the streets.

Fleuret had revealed that as a minimum 5 million people in France, 1 person out of 2, played a musical instrument. Hence the 1st World Music Day was held in 1982 in Paris as the Fete de la Musique. Now the music festival is celebrated generally worldwide.

Objective

The World Music Day goals to inspire both amateur & professional musicians to perform on the streets. The day goals to make all genres of music available to the public via the medium of free music concerts.

35th GST Council meeting with No decision on electric vehicles; E-tickets made compulsory in Cinema halls on - 21st June 2019

The 35th Goods & Services Tax Council meeting was organised on June 21st, 2019 in New Delhi. It was the 1st Goods & Services Tax Council meeting under the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who discussed about simplification of Goods & Services Tax Rules & bringing extra items under the domain of Goods & Services Tax rate in her opening remarks.
Though the Council considered on the reduction of the tax slab on electric vehicles to 5% from 12%, it could not reach on the conclusion. This matter of Goods & Services Tax rate cuts for the electric vehicles was forwarded to the Fitment Committee for further consideration.

Key Decisions Taken During 35th GST Council Meeting

• E-ticketing made necessary for cinema complex.
• Roll out of new single Goods & Services Tax return form for all by January 2020.
• Tenure of National Anti-profiteering Authority stretched for Two years.
• Fine Provisions of National Anti-profiteering Authority made stricter.
• Usage of Aadhaar permitted for registration to Goods & Services Tax Network.
• Goods & Services Tax e-way bill system to have NHAI’s FASTag mechanism for tracking movement of goods.

Induslnd Bank- BFIL merger to be effective from  - 4th July 2019

The fusion of Induslnd Bank & Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd will be operative from 4th July 2019. This conclusion to file National Company Law Tribunal Order on 4th July, by lender IndusInd, Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd & IndusInd Financial Inclusion Ltd with Registrar of Companies was taken by the boards of IndusInd & Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd.

Key Highlights

• In October 2018, IndusInd Bank finalised to attain India’s leading micro-finance player Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd.
• On 10th June, 2019, National Company Law Tribunal, a quasi-judicial body in India that arbitrates matters relating to Indian companies, authorized Scheme of Arrangement among Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd, IndusInd & IndusInd Financial Inclusion Ltd & their respective stakeholders & creditors.
• Following the merger, present CEO of Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd, M.R.Rao, will become the CEO of IndusInd Financial Inclusion Ltd & all employees of BFIL will become part of Induslnd family.
• The Business Correspondent network of Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd will work under IndusInd Financial Inclusion Ltd.
• All Assets & liabilities of Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd will be fused with IndusInd’s balance sheet.
• The combined financial results for 1st quarter of Financial Year 2019 will be published on 12th July 2019.

Importance

This merger of IndusInd Bank Limited & Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd will allow 8.8 million microfinance clients of Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd to access savings, deposits & other banking facilities. Thus, the merger will assist in boosting financial inclusion in its truest form.

Also, talent, capabilities & distribution of Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd will enable IndusInd Bank to play an extra meaningful role in rural India & will fulfil determination of building financial inclusiveness & sustainability in large swathes of unbanked & underbanked India.

Who has been appointed India’s representative to ICAO’s council ? - Shefali Juneja

Senior bureaucrat Shefali Juneja was designated as representative of India in council of International Civil Aviation Organisation, Montreal, Canada.

More about Shefali Juneja

She is a 1992 batch officer of Indian Revenue Service (IT cadre) & is presently working as the Joint Secretary in Ministry of Civil Aviation.

She has been selected to Representative of India position in the council of International Civil Aviation Organisation, Montreal, Canada. Her tenure as a representative will for a time period of 3 years.

She will replace senior IAS officer Alok Shekhar who was nominated for this position in October 2015.

More about International Civil Aviation Organisation

It is a specialized agency of UN, charged with synchronizing & regulating international air travel.

International Civil Aviation Organisation was recognized in 1944 by Convention on International Civil Aviation also known as Chicago Convention. It is HQ in Quartier International of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

The main aim behind this was to accomplish administration & governance of Chicago Convention.

Function

It functions with Member States & various industry groups, towards reaching a consensus on international civil aviation Standards Accepted globally & Recommended Practices & policies.

International Civil Aviation Organisation Member States utilise these Standards Accepted globally & Recommended Practices & policies, to make sure that their local civil aviation operations & guidelines conform to international norms & also to support safe, efficient, economically sustainable & environmentally responsible civil aviation sector.

 Operation Sankalp in Persian Gulf launched by - Indian Navy

Indian Navy released ‘Operation Sankalp’ in Persian Gulf & Gulf of Oman to encourage safe passage of Indian flagged vessels transiting via area. This placement is in the wake of following recent maritime incidents in region.

Key Highlights

Indian Naval Ships, INS Chennai & INS Sunayna have been deployed in region to undertake maritime security operations. In addition to this, aerial observation is also active in area by IN aircraft.

The Information Fusion Centre-Indian Ocean Region of Indian Navy is also active for a close watch on movement of ships in Gulf region. Information Fusion Centre-Indian Ocean Region, launched in December 2018, engages with partner nations to produce comprehensive maritime domain awareness & also share data on vessels of interest.

Operation Sankalp has been released in wake of rising tension in Gulf of Oman, where 2 oil tankers, including Norwegian-owned & other Japanese-owned, were attacked on 13th June 2019. This incident has pushed to heightened tensions between Iran & US. Although, it remains unclear that who was answerable for attacks but USA has put the blame on Iran, which, in turn, has denied all allegations.